Infected Scar
by Sloth45
Summary: My name is Harry Potter. I'm the reason for all this. They call me a killer, a monster, a Dark Lord. Now, I am all of these things. [NOTE: ON HIATUS. Likely to be deleted at some point so I can take the idea and start over when my writing ability is less garbage. ]
1. Prologue

My name is Harry Potter. I'm the reason for all this. They call me a killer, a monster, a Dark Lord. Now, I am all of these things.

Years ago, Voldemort tore down the wards around my parents home. He killed them both, and I ended up in a house that hated me, hated everything I stood for, and didn't stand for, just because of where I came from.

But that wasn't enough to break me. And I was strong enough to make them pay.

All of them.

All it took was one stupid death eater in the right place with the right weapon to make sure I was more powerful then anything the world had ever seen.


	2. Chapter 1

I ran.

My cousin Dudley was chasing me. Why, I didn't know. He'd never been able to catch me before, but his constant failure didn't seem to faze him in the slightest. He should have been at home, badgering his parents and my aunt and uncle for presents, because his birthday was coming up in the next two weeks. He'd be six. I was five, but he never had any problems with trying to hit people younger then him.

Emphasis on trying.

I was able to duck into an alley to lose him. After that, it was a simple matter to scale the nearest building wall to get to the roof.

Dudley was persistent, but he could never do the things I could do, and I think everyone knew it. My aunt and uncle called me a freak, tried to beat my abilities out of me. They failed. I had gone hungry so many times before, but I always seemed to hold on somehow. One day, I'd figure out how to get back at them, get back at them all. Only Vernon, my uncle, beat me, but my Aunt fully assisted him, making me work for them as a slave.

And I did know the word slave. I was unusually clear-headed for a five year old, and I got far better marks then Dudley did. Of course, that only led him to chase me more persistently every time I turned in an assignment. How he was still fat after getting so much exercise was beyond me.

But for now, I had escaped, and had time. I headed for London, as I was fast enough to run there myself and be back in time to cook the food I wouldn't be allowed to eat.

I didn't know I would never go hungry again after that trip.

* * *

><p>London.<p>

Being a small child with no money, I tended to hang out with the street rats. The homeless kids, the ones that nobody ever wants to think about, wants to think about how they existed at all. They were beneath most people, here, and painful to consider for the very, very few good people I could name.

And no good person I could name had ever helped me.

Still, I was content to rove with the first pack I came upon. They recognized me and waved me over. I had been hanging out with these kinds of kids ever since I was three, and first discovered just how fast I could run. Now, most of the ones who knew who I was thought it was weird that I worked with them, when I had a home, but I was useful, so they let me stick around.

I was the fastest message carrier they had, the strongest kid around, the kind able to shove dumpsters without wheels out of place and open locked doors by opening it by pulling the door until the lock broke off entirely.

I was, in short, better.

They didn't know that my home wasn't really my home, just the place where I worked and where I was sent to a closet at night. But it was a place to exist, and that was good enough for me. The beatings never injured me too badly, and they were happy to get me out of the house once I finished my jobs. Dudley wasn't a problem, as he'd never been fast enough to be one.

And, of course, because my Aunt and Uncle were doing their absolute best to make me miserable (and notably failing), they had spread the nastiest rumors they could think of. Unfortunately, in the kind of neighborhood they lived in, everyone gossiped. It was their only real hobby. So word spread, and back 'home', I had no connections.

Which is why I spent time in London. The street rats couldn't support anyone who didn't pull their weight, but I pulled far more then that, so they welcomed me with open, unwashed arms.

We patrolled.

* * *

><p>I didn't notice him until everyone else had run.<p>

Normally, my senses were very sharp, but I had been shifting some heavy discarded scrap that had probably been half an outdated machine at some point, and it's noise had masked his.

He was equally as filthy as the people I had been running with, but now I was alone, and he had a knife. It looked like it had been looted from a kitchen drawer, but it also looked very sharp. This was new. In my beatings, the Dursley's had never used sharp weapons before, and I didn't want to find out what it was like to feel it in use.

Unfortunately, he was blocking my one exit that didn't involve giving away my nature as more then an average child. It looked like this was one situation in which I'd have to fight back.

I guess that meant it was unfortunate for him.

I let him draw near, then struck first. He never expected resistance from me, but he got it. My punch actually sent him flying away from me, the knife clattering to the ground. He slammed into the wall of the alley he had boxed me into, and slid to the ground, staring at me in fear. He started to scramble to his feet, but I wasn't going to let him escape. I couldn't. My true powers could never be revealed. I had enough trouble to deal with as it was.

And then I was in front of him, picking him up with one hand and slamming him against the wall again and again until he stopped moving. He never expected me to move so quickly. I never expected what happened next.

I beat him and beat him until my fists were no longer solid, and neither was he. Black tendrils emerged from my body, all over, and pulled him to me, even as he was becoming a black tangled mass, and in under two seconds, he was a part of me, absorbed.

I fell to my knees at the unexpected flood of memory, a lifetime of events, of experiences... And the most relevant ones were coming to the surface.

* * *

><p><em>Just a rotten brat. Going around, digging through other people's trash. Fucking disgusting. Maybe I ought to teach those pieces of gutter trash that they can't steal my things.<em>

_Maybe I'll even be able to make a profit off of one on the black market somewhere..._

* * *

><p>I stood up. Footsteps, approaching quickly. Someone had heard the fight, and were on their way to investigate. I was still shocked by what had happened- And processing it all with a new mental clarity, with the power of another mind, an older mind, added to my own- and couldn't move. I didn't need to.<p>

I looked down at myself, examining, as the same black mass enveloped me, consumed me, from the head down, and where it passed, with the occasional red whirl, I ceased to exist.

Instead, I was the mugger I had just consumed. Right down to the dirty, tatty clothes.

A well-to-do looking woman reached the mouth of the alley, but after one look to see that nothing was going on, she turned her nose up at me and left.

But more importantly, I was healthy. The beatings administered through Uncle Vernon had vanished in this form, and I felt no hunger, which was a very welcome change. It wasn't hard to change back to my natural form, my newly-created clothes falling away with the rest of my new body as I turned back into who I had been before. So, if I wanted to get clothes other then cast-offs, I'd have to take them from the body's beforehand.

I examined myself again, once more, with more thoughts available to me now, more words, better descriptions. My wounds were gone still. The new health had converted over from my new form. I felt stronger, smarter. Maybe not faster... Not yet.

This new ability had potential. For now, I decided I should return home, better to have some privacy to learn the basics of this new power of mine. I didn't know where this kind of power came from, why I was so different, so much better, but I knew one day I would find out. Especially since I could now directly gain memories.

I had a few ideas, but I needed to find a way to consume people stealthily, without noise or with attracting attention. My mugger hadn't had anything of value, but maybe the next person would.

I returned home, a smile on my face.


	3. Chapter 2

It didn't take long for me to realise my first idea, breaking into the homes of the dead and pawning their stuff, was dumb. Instead, I quickly realized the value of simply draining their bank accounts and checking their home for anything that interested me before moving on.

Beatings continued, but I didn't care, since I now had an ability to undo whatever damage they did, long since used to the pain, and an idea of how to get rich and whatever I wanted, but I still needed to figure out how to start my little get-rich-quick spree.

I wondered for a moment if I should have cared about the lives of the people I planned to consume, but realized I didn't, so it was a moot point. The Dursley's had long beat out any compassion I may have once had, and the person I'd consumed had also not had a huge problem with selling me on the black market for spare parts, so I wasn't getting anything out of him, either.

Priorities first, though. I needed to learn stealth. And while I couldn't risk trial and error, I now had a very good way to learn things indeed.

* * *

><p>Given my old haunts, it didn't take me long to scan the crowds of London with sharp eyes to find a pick-pocket.<p>

Even better, it was a smart pick-pocket.

He managed to get away without getting caught, which sparked my interested, and veered away. I followed him as covertly as I could. He ended up going to a nearby central alley, an alley not too far away from any particular point in this area, and hid his loot until he could come back later to take it home without being followed.

Clever kid. Too bad for him I needed that cleverness. He didn't even have time to scream before my fist rocketed through his chest and struck where his lungs joined. It was pure luck, as I hadn't intended to silence him- I had intended to take his form, and play it off. That looked like it would pay off, though. I figured I'd try to find a doctor in the future. But for now, I leaned against the wall, and embraced a short lifetime of memories, picking out his hard earned skill for me to copy as his body dissolved around my hand and morphed into me so fast, anyone who saw it would think they were seeing things.

I would have to learn to consume faster.

But for now, I knew how to pickpocket. That was good, but not good enough. Now, I needed to find a thief. I couldn't rely on picking people from the street if I wanted to acquire skills, and my own ability to simply break locks didn't have the subtlety I wanted. But if I wanted that, I'd have to go underground to find one.

* * *

><p>It didn't take long to find my mark. He was mostly bald, and had a distinctly untrustworthy manner about him, and my new skills identified the way he was holding a bag that appeared to be filled with ill-gotten goods, judging from his expression and the way he held it. He was heading for a section of wall that nobody else seemed to be hanging around, but I didn't want him to get away to whatever hole he hid his valuables in- I wanted to consume him and take his valuables for myself. I contemplated on how I would pull this off.<p>

I went up to him, after disguising in a nearby alley as the pickpocket kid. "Excuse me, sir, could you possibly help me?" I offered politely, with a hint of uncertainty. As expected, he simply brushed me off with a snort of contempt as he swept past. Onto the next part of the ploy: "I need some help collecting the coin I spilled over there, it's just everywhere... You can keep some, if you help!" I continued, following behind him.

It worked. With the right hint of uncertainty, innocence, and ignorance in my voice, I sounded like the perfect mark. To me, it seemed too obvious to fall for, but this man apparently didn't believe a mark could be too perfect, and instead turned and asked, with great interest, where it was.

I explained it was in an alley right over there, where I had been playing with the other kids when they'd run off. His smile grew even wider, and though I hid it, inside I smiled too, because I knew why he was so happy: Rich, ignorant, alone, and in an isolated place. He eagerly followed me into the alley, striding ahead of me to get to the money.

He never learned it was a mistake to turn his back to me.

* * *

><p>Fletcher, or 'Dung' to his 'friends' (Seriously, which I found hilarious) knew quite a bit. One thing I learned was this.<p>

Magic was real.

This was enough of a world-shaker, but there was something more on top of that:

I was famous, incredibly so, in this world locked off from the one I lived in.

I must have sat in that alley for an hour, combing through his memories. Mundungus was a veritable fount of knowlage, and though I could tell he was not the sort of person I'd turn my back to, ever, he was far more useful to me in death then he had been to anyone in life. I lifted his shaped stick, his wand, from where he had stowed it in his 'muggle' clothing. He had been out in the real world to pawn off cursed objects to unwary people, who wouldn't be able to tell the difference, and to sell things common and cheap there at hugely marked up prices.

After a moment of concentration, I recalled the correct incantation, and the bag flew to my side and into my spare hand. Dung, it seemed had quite the aptitude for making objects fly, usually into his hands and pockets. Furthermore, it seemed I now had his magic.

He didn't know any other magical person who had abilities like mine, so I continued to assume they were unique, and so would have to keep them secret. It also seemed like I was very, very rich in his kind of money (he'd been the sort to pay attention to money, no matter who's it was), but I suspected I shouldn't try to draw on it. After all, it had been kept hidden from me, and so I didn't want to tip my hand that I knew.

He also didn't know a lot of 'common' magics like those for cleaning and doing general work, but was a master of the underground trades. Specifically, he could "confound' a muggle and clean them out, and be gone before the person knew they were robbed. He'd stuck to non-magical peoples, though, as wizards would be able to counter it.

I was excited. Magic. And now I could do it. I now had more goals: Enter the magical world, enter it's own underground, and start stealing magic and spells as often as I could get away with. Then, start using magic to easily consume muggles, and steal their skills. I wouldn't let this new skill replace my old ones- I would build both types, so if I couldn't beat someone with one, I'd be able to beat them with the other.

Harry potter was on the prowl.


	4. Chapter 3

They say it's impossible to break into Gringotts bank.

That just made it unusually easy to do for those who could do the impossible.

I didn't need to break into Gringotts, of course. But I did need to use it, which thankfully I did. Gringotts, as far as I could gather, checked magical cores. Magical cores could not be duplicated or disguised, nor could they mimic another core.

Until me, of course.

The plan was simple, and after a few days and a dozen new faces, it was ready. It was easy to set up a low profile business that no-one knew what actually did. All you needed was a few people and to set up a few signs in Knockturn Alley. It was supposedly a shop by owl post, at first, but once I had it set up as a shady place of business, I was able to open a vault for it.

That was the key to fortune. My new faces poured their funds into it, and I could consume the unwary witches and wizards and donate all of their money to this business. I didn't take any keepsakes from their new forms- There were all sorts of spells and charms to prevent theft on some magical artifacts, including alarms, and none of my targets had known how to successfully circumvent all of them. So it was best to just leave them alone. The gold coins filling my new vault was enough for me.

It was surprisingly, almost pitifully easy to have this little plan work in the wizarding world of Britain. Wizards, the local kind, at least, did not tend to look beyond their nose, and since my new shop didn't actually have any criminal activities going on (That could be traced), nobody paid it any mind.

Finding this world was like finding a magical world with lots of toys lying around in piles, begging to be taken. Though, for me, it was more like toys and snacks. I consumed people, to be sure, but I never actually tasted them. I didn't have any desire to, either.

Thankfully, the Goblins were an unusual sort of people. They were utterly unconcerned with the affairs of wizards, and if a steady stream of people wanted to pour all of their gold into a single vault, all they would do is occasionally complement me when I checked on the vault in my favorite form to date. They had very pointed smiles, and I knew why they were happy that I was getting so much gold in my vault: Because they were getting so much gold in a vault they owned, and they were happy to take some of it off my hands for various reasons. Vaults also held magical artifacts, if you chose to store them there, so I had also taken up a collection of wands. Most wizards couldn't use a wand that didn't chose them, but I could use them as perfectly as the wizard they chose, while wearing their form.

Oh, yeah, my favorite form. I managed to find a very nice looking businessman, very presentable. He was a muggle, but I was able to dress him in appropriate robes, taken from a body before I consumed it.

I had still yet to find a doctor, though. Wizards seemed to have the same biology, more or less, then muggles, and all the major differences were intangible, magic undetectable but for more magic. Magical Healers wouldn't be as useful to me, as they were more equipped for symptoms and what spells and potions to use on them. They didn't seem to me like they actually knew more then they needed to.

Muggle doctors, on the other hand, did need to know, and so they did. So, they were on my to-hunt list, but they were not on the top of my list.

Elves were.

* * *

><p>House elves, to be specific.<p>

House elves, in general, had fantastic abilities, and could do so much work with so little effort that you could probably take over the world with them if you had enough of them. Despite this, they just existed, and were used without consideration to do whatever jobs their owners didn't care to do. For Purebloods, as they called themselves, this was most things that would not directly bring them popularity, fame, or money, and sometimes even then.

Needless to say, I wanted that unknown, powerful magic that was heard of but unexpected from virtually every source. I wondered if I could disguise myself as a house elf- That would be extremely useful. I'd have to give it a try when I had the chance.

Which would be soon. It was night, now, and I looked out at a pureblood home, dressed in guise of a man who had not yet bought the services of my as-of-yet-unnamed shop, just to be sure. I was also wearing a face-concealing cloak, spelled to conceal my face even when it shouldn't, just to be even more sure. The precautions cost little to me, and were little needed, but I was not to throw away an advantage, even if I didn't need it.

This is why I was still hunting down muggles to consume. Martial artists were good, but street fighters with dirty tricks were better. Healers were useful, but they didn't know enough for what I wanted, so doctors it would be. Most wizards underestimated muggles because Muggles did not solve problems as directly as wizards did with magic.

That only made them more dangerous, in some ways.

But I was getting off topic. My mind had started to wander quite a lot since I started adding more minds to it, and it was something I'd have to learn to control.

I was waiting outside Avery Manor, contemplating my plan. As far as I could tell, only one Avery was still alive at this point. I would quickly remedy that. I cast a quiet, simply privacy charm so any passerby wouldn't see me walking up to the door (Though it was a remote enough location, and I only knew it because I had consumed a business contact of theirs), and moved forward.

I knocked on the door, and soon enough, he came forward. He was an unpleasant seeming man, to my honed perception of people, but also looked like he was charismatic enough, if he chose to be.

"Is there anyone else home? I have an offer I have to offer to you, and only you," I said, glancing about. He didn't look impressed, but said "No, and I have no intention of dealing with you. Good day," he started, moving to close the door. I caught it and smiled at him.

"Yes, it is a good day. Good for me."

He was gone in seconds. The house wards shuddered threatingly as the sole member of the family left them, but were quickly silenced by his magical 'signature' reappearing. I grinned, and went inside, calling for 'my' elf.

It appeared with a minor pop, and I called it over. It looked nervous, and held it's long ears as it walked, but obeyed.

In only a few moments, it too was gone, and I staggered back from the flood of memories.

* * *

><p>The house elf was almost a treasure trove of information of equal measure to learning about magic itself. Maybe even more.<p>

It turned out I could turn into consumed creatures, not just people, and I made a note to go hunting around the world, soon. Many wizards knew how to use Apparition, which was to turn in one spot and magically reappear somewhere else. However, no single witch or wizad was powerful enough to hop around the world at their leisure.

Not yet, anyway. But I would be. But for now, I was content to stay with the Durleys. But things were going to change.

First up: A top quality magical trunk. I would have a living space the size of an apartment with one, and that was with only one layer. I didn't know how many layers, locks, and keys you could put on a trunk, but I imagined it was a lot.

Second: Confounding the Dursleys to believe they already beat me, and Memory Charm them if they cause trouble. Obliviating muggles was a fairly common event in the wizarding world, though typically the Ministry of Magic itself did so. I could do so with little problem, though.

And third: Testing out the "Time bendy spell", which expanded time for me, but not for the rest of the world. I would have more time then any wizard alive, save for one with a time turner. There were novels written on them, but I myself had yet to be able to get my hands on one.

This particular, very very useful bit of magic, was House Elf Magic, and was used in food preparation. It was how House Elves could pop in and out with food and drink whenever required, and nobody questioned it because they were House Elves and House Elves just did that sort of thing all the time. I snorted to myself. I had no idea how the wizarding world had survived before I came along.

I wasn't sure it would survive after I was finished.


	5. Chapter 4

There was absolutely no reason to hunt down every magical creature I could get my hands on.

On the other hand, I was now very rich after just two months of consuming using my very special scam, Viran's Shoppe, which had moved from an owl post 'service' to a seedy looking shop in Knockturn Alley. It's windows were full of perfectly legal items that had many legal uses, and some creative uses that were less then legal.

In short, it was the perfect disguise against witches and wizards.

So, I had money, free time, and a list of things to do that were not at all urgent and involved traveling all over the world. In short, it was vacation time. I just had a few things I had to do first.

* * *

><p>First, a traveling trunk. I had my home-trunk stashed in the back of my 'shop', but if I was going to be globetrotting, I was going to need something I could take with me. It wasn't long before I found the perfect trunk: Much the same as my first one, with less levels, but it shrunk easily, and had a long series of legs that steadily inched it forward with surprising speed to follow it's owner.<p>

After that, I returned to Number 4, Privet Drive, sitting on my trunk, which was not a bad form of land transportation at all. It and I both had to be Disillusioned, or cloaked with near invisibility, but it wasn't bad at all. For one, it was a lazy method of travel, and I had so very few of those.

Once inside, I silently stunned everyone inside and memory charmed them. Memory charms were more difficult to do on an unconscious target, but for me, it wasn't much of a problem. I convinced them that they had finally gotten sick of the "freak" and finally sent him to an orphanage. It definitely seemed like the kind of thing they would have done, had they had a choice. Which only brought up the question of why they _hadn't_.

Whatever. It didn't really matter, in the end.

But now was different. After a series of 'mysterious disappearances', which someone was doubtlessly looking into, it was time to leave England for a time. And because of all the consuming I had done, I was able to.

Normally, witches and wizards simply were not able to apparate between countries, it being a simple matter of power. Portkeys were the typical method, but there were special government-funded apparition pads set up to ease the travel enough for the average witch and wizard. It was tax funded, but not often used: Most witches and wizards preferred to stay at home, or if their job took them to other countries, they often stayed there for long periods.

But I didn't want to use those. I was certainly rich enough, even with the tax-eased cost, but I had wanted to be able to go anywhere in the world, at any time, at a moment's notice. And now I could. House Elf magic was especially good for this. It was a little known fact that House Elves could actually breach ALL anti-travel wards, not just those set by their masters. It was a fact deliberately hidden, to make people at ease with the race. The population's sheep-like tendencies only made this easier.

I was almost ready to go. A quick visit to the pet shop in Diagon Alley, and it would be time.

Time to go to Asia.

* * *

><p>Brunei, Asia.<p>

Nice enough place, I suppose.

After purchasing and consuming a post owl, I had the ability to track just about any person or location on the planet. I didn't even need a name if I had a location, and I didn't need a location if I had a name. Maybe even more. Post owls were like house elves, in a way- Completely underestimated.

Normally, I would go ahead and enjoy myself before I started down my list, but this particular mark sounded too good to pass up. Peaceful, mostly defenseless, with a very useful ability that I wanted in my arsenal:

The Demiguise.

But first, I needed to find a demiguise hunter. You had to be specially trained just to be able to see the things- They were naturally invisible.

I wanted that invisibility. Disillusionment charms were useful, but they took time to do properly for most (and 'most' is where I had gained my skills), and were not entirely perfect. No, this invisibility was much, much better. That is why they had hunters: Hair taken from them could be woven into invisibility cloaks, though once removed, the hairs slowly turned visible, giving a cloak so-made a lifespan of usefulness.

That wouldn't be a problem for me.

The Demiguise were one of a fairly short list of species that could live side-by-side with muggles without problem. They were herbivores, and invisible, and exceedingly difficult to track on top of that, so they were able to live in the forests near the roads. The prefered forests further away, though, so that was somewhat rare.

It hadn't been hard to find and consume a Demiguise hunter. They weren't fighters by nature, they were trackers. Plus, they were typically rich, and you'd be surprised how rich people can be about security- It's like they believe they're too rich to have something bad happen to them. Well, with 'new money', anyway, old families knew better. I had almost lost him, though, as he must have sensed something was up and had an invisibility cloak halfway out of his [magically expanded] pocket before I had to drop the act and tear his throat out.

Thankfully, no one else was around.

So now, I was tracking the nearest healthy Demiguise with my post owl tracking ability... And, now that I came to think of it, I really had to come up with better names for my abilities. I may have had the abilities and mental clarity of many, many adults, but I was still five, and 'cool factor' was still totally something that was involved.

So now I was Hunting down a demiguise, relaxing on top of my trunk as it wound through the Forrest steadily, dodging around trees, unable to move in a straight line. It was relaxing, hunting like this.

It turned out the Demiguise were not actually very reactive to nearby events and creatures. They tended to ignore anything that wasn't about to hit them, well used to everything being unable to see them.

I guess no one had ever tried to mail a demiguise anything.

So, I was able to approach the large, apelike creature without problem. It slowly shuffled out of the path of my trunk, grazing on the various foliage. I knew where it was, and I could get a vague impression of it's location, thanks to my new skills, but I wouldn't be able to really examine it's body unless it was a corpse. I didn't leave corpses. Oh well. I didn't need to see it to hunt it.

It actually put up something of a fight. My fists were effective, but a blade would have silenced it's thrashing much, much faster. I would have to look into getting a weapon if I was going to hunt magical creatures. Still, I managed to slam my other hand directly into the side of it's head, and it went still long enough for me to absorb it.

I found it easier to tear out parts of it to absorb them taking in all of it. I also tried my best to ignore the flood of memories, delegating the other minds at my command to deal with them while I focused on dealing with what I had come for: The new power.

I climbed off it, and in a flurry of movement and two-tone colors like my disguising, I was invisible.

I smiled, even though no one could see it.

* * *

><p>You know, absorbing memories was very useful, but some things you really could only find in a book.<p>

Books recorded information, and it didn't matter if the information didn't matter to anyone and wasn't remembered- Books would hold even the most trivial clue as long as the book was readable. I was growing quite fond of reading.

Well, some books, anyway. Books with facts were nice. Anything by Lockhart and people like him were garbage. Garbage that sold, admittedly, but that was money, and I had enough of that to even consider sitting down to write such tripe.

I had a cool new ability, though. I had one of the most impenetrable forms of Invisibility on the planet, which I had decided to call Cloak. Something of a muggle inspired name, but I grew up with muggles, so anyone who complained would have to deal. Right before I killed and consumed them for knowing a vital secret, of course.

I wondered if I should pick up a traveling companion at some point. There was a need for secrecy, but it might get a little boring, all alone. I'd have to think about it. It would be a huge risk, but...

Well, Unbreakable Bonds had a very literal name. Maybe there was hope for that idea yet.


	6. Chapter 5

I decided to relax, for a while. I placed my trunk in my pocket, shrunken, of course, and apparated to America. Why America? Because I wanted someplace with enough roads to go across the entire country, and I didn't want to head back to Britain until I had to. I wanted to see the world. So, I started in California, placed down my traveling chest, set a proximity detector on it, and set it to march steadily down the sides of the roads, before climbing into the apartment inside. It had stabilizing charms, much like all expensive expanded trunks. I made a note to eat people who knew how to make these trunks.

That, and people who knew the proper runes for scrying. It was something of a lost art in Great Britain- It was actually a branch of Divination, but everyone who was 'credible' there was taught in Hogwarts, and Hogwarts had dropped all divination studies that didn't relate to the future, for some reason or another.

That just meant my mark for that particular skill would be more exotic. There were some devices heard of there that operated on the principal- Namely communication mirrors- But I didn't know anyone who made them, yet. That would change.

But for now, I was content to sit in my trunk, read, and plan, as my trunk steadily moved forward on it's innumerable small limbs. Of course, whenever someone came near, I consumed them, but that was mostly because I didn't pack any food. I hadn't needed to, my food was everywhere.

My next mark wasn't actually in America, but it was a nice change. Apparition co-ordinates were easy to find, but actually being somewhere made it much easier for most to appear there. Of course, almost all apparition was easy to me, now. And it was the source of that I was going after, next.

I placed down my book, sliding in a piece of paper with my plans on it in between the pages as a bookmark. I could come back to America later, for the scrying training. But for now, I wanted to get my next boon sooner rather then later. It would be so useful.

And so unexpected, yet taken for granted.

* * *

><p>House elves actually originated in Iceland.<p>

Go figure.

Then again, there were elf-like creatures all over the world. I had, of course, picked up a copy of Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them. It was only a sensible purchase.

I had left my trunk by the side of the road in... I wondered where I had left it, actually. Utah, probably. It was surprisingly fast, when I wasn't riding on top of it. Not nearly so as apparition, but I wasn't in a hurry.

Normally.

This was something of a mission- It had a goal, and it had to be done quickly. I had left something of an apparition beacon next to my trunk. They could be a security risk if left up permanently, but I would take it down when I returned.

I was in an underground cave system. Yes, House Elves actually lived in caves, when they were left alone. They were powerful creatures, and could overcome most wizards or witches enchantments, but instead of taking over the world, they preferred to keep to themselves. Strange, but they were a strange race by themselves. I did like the house-elf form, but I needed some extra magical power in a branch of Transfiguration, somewhat related to the animagus skill, to change forms with mass compressed too far, or expanded too far. Lack of magic was not a problem, though. I appreciated the little symbiotic creature's thaumavore abilities, but it was typically only between a bonded family and a house elf.

I would not be bound.

Fortunately, there was another creature on my list, for that- A Chizpurfle, a creature that could feed off of both magic and electricity, though it greatly preferred to feed on magic. I wanted it. With that kind of power, I could survive just about everywhere.

But that was all in the future. I was currently invisible, with my Demiguise power, watching house elves scurry past. Many house elves were born here, before they were shipped out to various families for various reasons. They often went between other sources, to be sold instead of merely adopted, but I didn't quite understand the house elf mentality. It was in my memories, but it was still quite strange.

I stepped forward, grabbed a House Elf, and vanished.

* * *

><p>I pushed the House Elf to the floor, and stunned it, before it had a chance to realize it had been grabbed. More gently, I picked it up. I didn't want to hurt this particular mark, which was a definite change. I opened my trunk to the apartment level, and stepped inside, destroying the apparition beacon as I went.<p>

I placed it (Him? Her? It was hard to tell until they opened their mouths, sometimes) onto my bed, before memory-charming it. I was careful enough, keeping it's skills and basic facts about itself intact, but erasing it's memory of it's past, and where it had come from. I cast Rennervate upon it, and waited for it to rouse. Originally, the spell had just been "Ennervate", and was still taught as such in some places, but it had had a chance to backfire due to conflicting word roots or something, which was still a little beyond me. The revised version was more difficult to master, but more effective.

While I mused, mind wandering as it tended to do, the house elf awoke, and looked around. It squeaked, and turned it's head to look directly at me.

"Are you my master?" she asked. Oh, so it was a she. Good to know.

"Yes, I am your master now. What is your name?" I asked quietly. I saw no point in abusing house elves- On top of being pointless cruelty, it was stupid. House elves could still betray you, if they were determined enough.

"Flipsy, Master Sir," she offered, bowing down to me. She pronounced the I almost as a double-e, but not quite. It explained why so many house elves had silly names- They were alien names, from another culture, that Wizards failed to comprehend, and mispronounced until the elves responded to that, instead. I might change her name in the future to something more respectable, but in private, it would be fine for now.

"Hello, Flipsy," I said, making sure to pronounce it correctly, "It's good to meet you. I noticed you haven't bonded with me yet, and I have things for you to do once you do." I offered. She perked up at the mention of both the bonding and the work- House elves drew a little more magic then was required from their master to let them work. Hence, working didn't tire them, but instead energized them, bit by bit. Their magic was more efficient then a wizard's by far, though, so most families, the drain spread across the magical family members, never noticed.

I shook my head from my inner monologues- I was afraid it was becoming something of a character flaw of mine- as she nodded and bonded herself to my magic. She looked surprised, and I knew why- Unless a Master specifically did not want to, a house elf would connect to their mind during first bonding to bring them exactly what they wanted at that moment. And I specifically didn't want to. "Sir?" she asked.

"It's Harry, but don't tell anyone that name, or any of my other names, unless I tell you to directly, out loud, in speech," I said. It was very particular, but I was going to protect my secrets with more then just trust in another creature. She nodded, so I continued. "I need you to swear an Unbreakable Vow, now. If you don't want to, I will dismiss you from service, and find another elf." I continued. I thought her eyes might bulge out of her head in alarm- Not bonded for five minutes, and she might be disgraced already? She practically threw herself to my feet in a flurry of acceptance. Since we were both sitting on the bed, she didn't literally do so- Yet. I'd probably say something about that in a moment.

Since she seemed very ready to accept it, I spoke the terms to her. "Will you, as long as you live, never real anything to anyone about me that I do not myself share about myself, and Vow to die if you so much as try or seriously contemplate doing so?" I asked. I wouldn't ask for her to suicide over idle thought, but I couldn't hide my true nature from a bonded creature such as Flipsy. She nodded eagerly.

A golden bond appeared between us, a ribbon of magic, twisting in nonexistent breeze. The reason for this is that I didn't use the Wizard unbreakable vow, but a house elf equivalent, as I didn't have a third person available for it, and this version would draw on my own substantial magic for power- Leaving me more self sufficient, something I valued. I allowed her to use her basic natural equivalent to Legilimency on me, then. I had already Consumed recently, but I wanted to have her silence ensured when she realized my needs involved 'eating' humans, from wizards to muggles.

I directed her to the wardrobe Stuck in the corner with the charm of the same name, and had her open it with a gesture and mental command. I wasn't a Legilimens, not yet, but I probably knew more about the Master/House Elf bond then anyone alive. She did so, and I had her bring out one of the many, many robes I had collected from my prey, in case I needed the fabric- And I did, now.

"Most house elves wear a pillowcase, or rags, or something similar. I won't have it. Take that robe and do whatever you want with it to make it your uniform," I said. It was very generous, as far as house elf owner behavior went, but that's because most were owned by purebloods from tradition and the fact that buying a house elf was monstrously expensive (And worth it), but purebloods were also kind of idiots. Like I said earlier, they can betray you, so abusing them is foolish.

She didn't know what to say, because she'd probably learned long ago (and thus had been included as part of her 'skills' I didn't wipe) what to expect from her host family. I just gently reminded her she was naked, and she blushed and hopped off the bed to scurry to another room to fashion herself an outfit. Not everyone was lucky enough to be able to form clothes from biomass, which is basically just consumed creatures being turned into stuff, like I was.

I would let her get dressed, and then we would plan. I needed a wizard had to communicate frequently. Someone progressive.

I poked my head out of the lid of the chest, and directed it to start walking in the direction of New York, before climbing down the ladder.


	7. Chapter 6

New York was a very interesting place. Very busy place, too.

I parked my trunk in a specific alley and disillusioned it, leaving an apparition beacon at the mouth of the alley instead of directly in front of it for added protection.

I sent Flipsy out, invisibly, to scout the city to find the kinds of marks I needed on a list I wrote down for her to check while in the field. In the meantime, I waited in my trunk and contemplated my combat style.

It was time to hunt.

* * *

><p>I got lucky.<p>

As I suspected, I found a Chizpurfle near a muggle electric plant. Well, of course it was a muggle electric plant, most wizards were barely cognizant of electricity, some couldn't even pronounce it correctly. You'd think they'd know what that thing is that comes from the sky during thunder storms, but no.

It's memories were entirely underwhelming, being an animal and less then an a quarter of an inch, but it was content to laze around all day safely consuming the power of the equipment. Not as good a food source to it as magic, but far safer and easier. I didn't like how vulnerable the form was, but the ability was very useful. Not much to speak for as a weapon, yet, but maybe I could overcharge it.

Next on my list was my chance to visit the doctor- And I'm afraid the only way to manage my symptoms was constant food intake. Good for me. Not so good for the doctor's bill of health. I sapped the cameras of power while I was near by prying open the protecting casing and pressing my fingers directly to it, lacking Chizpurfle fangs in human form, and stealth consuming everyone when it was down. As soon as the people who questioned why I had opened the camera casing were down, everyone else fell in line more or less easily enough.

This was something of an experiment. Get in, consume everything without using wizard magic, just for fun, and get out without anyone being able to explain it. Good thing nobody was carrying a camera. Or a phone. Phones were bulky things, and they weren't really practical just yet. Maybe in a few years they'd be more of a problem.

I snuck up behind the doctor now, finally giving in to using invisibility (Even though it wasn't nearly as fun) and tore out his spine with one hand, and jammed the other into the newly placed hole to consume him before he could even consider screaming- Which I doubted he could do without a spine.

With his memories, I didn't doubt. I knew.

* * *

><p>New york was a big city.<p>

As such, it had a big underground.

I found all sorts of criminals there. I was able to upgrade my pick-pocket ability (Pulled her heart out), my stealthy break in ability (Fist to the back of the head) and learned police tactics and how to use an American side-arm with decent ability (Shook his hand, didn't let go.) without much issue. Though, the policeman gave me an idea. Dirty fighters I could find just about anywhere- Actual trained military, and this access to firearms would be useful. I was plenty strong, but I didn't have any natural weapons other then punches and kicks so far. And magic, but I didn't really want to risk ruining a target so hard I didn't leave enough to consume. Plus, fighting was more fun, and while I would gladly stealth consume only for sustenance, gaining new abilities felt like it _should_ be at least something of a challenge.

I headed for the nearest library, found the reference I was looking for, and, as an afterthought, hit a car with an Impediment Jinx, ate the driver and passenger, and drove to my next target.

* * *

><p>Cars were kind of fun. Maybe I'd find a nice one and keep it in my trunk.<p>

Anyway. I hadn't found it in a book, but had by asking around- Fort Drum Military Base. It had some history that I didn't actually care about. What I did care about was the personel.

I didn't risk it, this time, and used my Cloak to get in. I found some night guards on site that were sleeping so they'd be alert when their shift came around.

I couldn't resist.

I collected a few firearms of all types, and ammunition for all of them. I didn't think I'd actually need them, but...

Well, I'll admit it. I was kind of enjoying taking trophies from my marks. My wand collection was going nicely; I had a few more stashed in my trunk to put in my vault back in England.

I snuck out of base with my new goodies shrunken and in my pocket, and left for home.

* * *

><p>Robes were fine, but you know what?<p>

I'm muggleborn.

Well, not really, but I might as well be.

I ditched the robes by the road halfway back to my trunk's alley, where Flipsy was waiting on top of the trunk. As such, my post owl Hunting could easily home in on her. I could have apparated, of course, but driving was a novel experience. Not exactly new; many of my memories had taught me how, but still interesting.

Instead of robes, I formed some jeans and a simple white shirt with a black hoodie on top out of biomass. Because of that, I could make them significantly tougher then they would have been otherwise. Robes were okay, I guess, but they weren't really me, and it was nice to have something decent for my base form. Of course, by the time I had parked at the entrance to the alley, I was back in the disguise I got from consuming the original driver of the car. Didn't want to have any problems.

Problems wanted me.

* * *

><p>I was sitting down near my invisible trunk, sorting my new toys out on the ground, trying to figure out what ammo went into where, and what gun took what kind of magazine. Had a few brand new ones, like the M9. Still a pistol, though, and thus it's power wasn't really comparable to what mine would be once I consumed some of the more interesting creatures out there. I was sitting outside, because occasionally I could get up to consume a passer-by if they looked interesting enough to me.<p>

Maybe even some of the more interesting magical plants, but I had some serious doubts on that. The trunk was open, and Flipsy had gone inside. I had yet to find the scrying skills I wanted in new york, so we weren't going to leave until I did.

Of course, that's when trouble found me, since I wasn't Cloaked, even if I was disguised. I felt the superhuman grip close around my neck.

So I slammed my elbow back into the chest of whomever was grabbing me with equally superhuman strength. They let go, partially in surprise, and I turned to see who had the sheer audacity to attack a man sorting out weapons on the ground.

Vampires. Well, I had to admit, that was new.

"You _ruined_ our operation at the medical facility," hissed one. I guess he wasn't the one to set it up, and wasn't as familiar with the muggle world as his leader. And since he was being dramatic, my exponentially augmented mind had plenty of time to mock them. "And now you _die!"_ he finished, flying forward, fangs exposed.

I flipped and kicked him in the teeth when he came in range. Well, if he was going to give me a target...

He flew back and hit the wall, and went still. Well, he just tried to attack someone who proved they were strong enough to pull himself out of their choke-hold, but whatever. He was trying to be dramatic, otherwise I would have just gotten vampire teeth to the neck. Wonder how that would have worked out for him. You'd think he'd have had a backup plan.

His backup plan stepped into the alley, blocking the light of the street lamp.

Two vampires. That might be harder.

They flew in, their show interrupted, and didn't bother with supplies, attacking head on. They were damn fast, too, and I grunted in effort holding them both off at the same time, one arm per vampire. I could really use a weapon that was effective against vampires. It was night, though, and none of the magical kinds I had consumed had ever heard more then rumors. So I tried something no wizard had probably tried while fighting two vampires in physical combat.

I twisted my grip from pushing them off in the split seconds they were coming closer, and turned it from pushing to grabbing.

I slammed their heads together.

They hissed as I shoved them back, and I managed to plant my foot in one before the other had drawn close again. Fuck, these guys were fast. I managed to knock him with a sideswipe into the wall, but it only served to give me space as he hissed again in displeasure, rather then pain.

I didn't have any biology lessons on vampires in my brain. Which was a shame, because these guys were nearly super soldiers with the level of damage they were soaking up. I could see why various dark lords had recruited them over the years.

Wait.

I nearly forgot.

I'm magic.

A silent, wandless Bombarda silenced the other vampire as it slammed against the wall to join the first. Two down. And the third was lying limply at the foot of another wall. I went up to it, and kicked it in the chest.

"You fuckers are tough, you know that?" I asked rhetorically. I would need a weapon if I was going to start fighting enemies that gave armed wizards trouble. They only gave me trouble because I was unarmed- No cool abilities yet for combat that I knew how to use tactically, no wand, and I doubt a gun would do more then do more then make it clutch it's injury before attacking you again.

Then it shot up and started to crush my neck much, much harder then the first, and my vision started going dark.

A small explosion sounded, and it dropped me to the ground, clutching it's head in obvious pain. I tore it apart with my bare hands and consumed it without a thought, an instinctive reaction to get what I needed to heal. I moved, and pulled the other two to me, rapidly consuming them both as well.

I had a need, now.

And enough sudden mass to fill it.

I leaned back against the wall, and roared as my arms exploded with biomass, the substance moving up to eat away at my flesh, replacing it, making it stronger. Solid biomass supports raised above my knuckles, and sharp blades of biomass- Like vampire teeth- jutted out from them, giving my punches a deadly sharp bite to them. I quieted as the rush of _pure power_ left me as the leftover biomass was assimilated into me as normal, giving my new weapons a look over. They were far deadlier then any brass or steel knuckles, like a few muggles had seen.

I looked to Flipsy, who had dropped her ability, and she went over, placing her smoking pistol on the ground next to the rest of the guns I had been sorting, and apologized for using my new things without asking. I just smiled semi-ferally at her and gestured for her to get inside the trunk, magically sweeping all my new, almost unused, trophies in after her.

Then?

Well, then then was the cops and bystanders waiting around who'd heard the combat and gunshot, staring uncomprehendingly at my disguised, powered up form.

I leapt.

The Obliviators were never called. By the time I was done, they didn't need to be.

* * *

><p>CUTFISTS UNLOCKED<p>

* * *

><p>((AN: Please leave reviews, they're very useful in keeping the story going, almost critical. Thank you.))<p> 


	8. Chapter 7

I decided to lay off on the hunt for magical creatures for now. I certainly didn't know of any that lived in new york (Discounting the Goblins, of course, they're just about everywhere wizards had set up society) in groups. There might be the occasional halfbreed, if you knew how to look, but I wasn't sure I wanted to try consuming one without first consuming a full-breed.

Of course, that didn't mean I had to give up on looking for cool animals entirely.

* * *

><p>I could have paid the fee to the zoo, but I didn't feel like it. While Goblins did trade wizarding gold to muggle money in all currencies, somehow (I made a note to consume a goblin at some point, it had slipped my mind while in England), I personally found it easier to simply Cloak and run up a wall near the entrance instead. I found a bathroom, opened a stall, then waited a few seconds and came out in my base form, demiguise invisibility dropped. Now I was just another five year old at the zoo. What could be wrong with that picture?<p>

I grinned, and went to see what kind of animals were on display.

I was tempted to consume a water creature to gain better swimming abilities, but was pretty sure a magical water creature would be better. Besides, all these manatees were hardly subtle, and would lead to strange questions if I was seen as one somewhere the sea cows weren't normally found.

I hopped invisibly into the gorilla enclosure, and milled about with them in Demiguise form, which highly resembled a particularly hairy ape... At least, it would if you could see it. Funnily enough, my Demiguise and the great apes got along pretty well. Maybe they had a common ancestor somewhere.

I leapt out from there, finding a place to return to human form and remove my Cloak, and considered what to do next.

I ended up raiding the food carts and feeding snacks to the carnivores. It was totally safe to feed a tiger, so long as you threw hot dogs instead of bringing your hands close, and were also invisible to them.

All this use of my Cloak was giving me a better sense of it- It was a very useful ability, and I couldn't imagine ever /not/ wanting to have the option to go invisible at all times.

I munched contemplatively on a hot dog (Which was made of biomass, animal and plant respectively) as I thought. Tiger claws would be nice, but I already had a new offensive power. My new teeth-bladed knuckle-things were nice, but I might try to upgrade them to a gauntlet at some point. I'd have to find someone who knew old fashioned actual-armor, the kind metal gauntlets were made for. Just another thing on the list.

I made my way to the reptile house. What I found there was a real surprise:

Particularly talkative snakes.

They all spoke up at once as soon as I pointed out I could hear them, and I checked for security cameras. There was one, so I had to stop and go disable it first. I simply twisted the camera to face another direction and bent the servo so it couldn't turn. After that, I hopped in, grabbed a random small snake, and hopped out.

I now had a tour guide.

* * *

><p>The snake was very informative, and fun.<p>

We had a good time, going to see the other animals, and I enjoyed listening to the snake mock them, how he was free and they were not. I had to Disillusion him, of course, but he didn't mind too much once I explained what it was for. I actually had three wands on my person right now- Some people kept a backup wand, but nobody I had ever consumed had known anyone who'd had a third as well. Then again, I tended to fight a lot more then the average wizard, even if I was the one starting the fights most of the time, so I guess constant vigilance while on the hunt was probably a good idea. Most of my mark's had hardly put up a fight, though.

The snake in question (He didn't have a name, or so he claimed) said that a "Ssspeaker" like me was very rare, and most snakes would obey me without question, as I had abilities and wisdom far beyond almost all snakes.

Almost, huh?

So, I asked him what kind of snake was not included in that- The exceptional kind. He had an answer:

The King Of Serpents.

Well, I couldn't just give up the topic after hearing that name.

Muggles had actually heard of this particular beast before, but they thought it was a mythical creature, much like many kinds of magical beasts: A Basilisk. None in my memories knew exactly how they came about, though a few knew they WERE made, specifically, somehow. I'd have to check a library.

The snake waxed on and on about it- He seemed very impressed with the prowess of the King. I couldn't really blame him- To kill with but a look.

Powerful.

I placed the snake back in his home (I did have some respect for fellow predators, if not enough to prevent me from eating them if I could gain from it) and cloaked in an inconspicuous corner, disguising from my true form to that of a random muggle.

Time for research.

* * *

><p>Wizards could be really, truly foolish at times.<p>

This I knew, but it bears repeating.

All knowledge of how to create the King of Serpents in the magical world had been wiped away by various ministries. It was simply too dangerous to allow.

The same knowledge still existed as-is in muggle legends, untouched, because wizards are fools. It was so simple: A toad on a chicken egg. That's it.

Well, you have to wait a week or two for the egg to hatch, but that's really it. Just strongly Compel the toad to sit on an egg and feed it occasionally.

I returned to my traveling trunk, took down the apparition beacon while I was at my home-away-from-home, and sent Flipsy out with a request for toads and eggs.

* * *

><p>It would take a while for her to get the ingredients, but I had found my mark:<p>

The scrying ability. Specifically, a teacher for Divination. _Actual _divination, not whatever it was they taught back home.

Well, the Dursley house was never really home.

New York had a sort of wizarding college. It didn't take younger wizards and witches, you had to be at least 17 before you could apply. The name wasn't important (Though I knew it, Williamford's School For Specialized Students. Must have been founded by a muggleborn.), as I wouldn't be taking classes here.

I hoped the students took careful notes, because class was about to be permanently dismissed.

Getting in was easy. Getting to his office after consuming a few students to find out where it was, was harder.

It turns out someone who taught about how to see the unseen and know the unknown had some really good detection charms around their office. I couldn't even get close before he opened the door to look around. I waved, disguised as a female student- One of his favorites, if my memories served me well, and he waved me in, smiling jovially.

I went in, and he closed the door behind him with a click.

Consuming him wasn't the hard part. My Cutfists impaled his windpipe before he had time to finish his question on if I'd finished chapter seven's assignment.

The hard part would be escaping, now that all sorts of shrill alarms were going off all over his office.

Ah, hell.

I Cloaked and bolted, invisibly Disguising as a student I had consumed while finding out his location. This particular student hadn't taken that class, though.

It turns out this school had some impressive security measures- As soon as all the alarms went off in a teacher's study, or whatever the American version was, the doors slammed resolutely and wards went up over them.

I wondered as I fled if I should consider consuming a ward expert, too.

I knew the alert wouldn't fall for a while, but I didn't want to stick around for questioning. So I looked for a weak-spot.

I was strong, but I wasn't strong enough to smash through walls, yet. The walls weren't warded, a typical magical lack of practical sense. I'd have to consider getting something good at smashing instead of cutting.

I ducked into a quiet classroom (Potions, from the look of it, and probably some advanced potions class too) and dropped my Cloak, Now if anyone could see through invisibility, they wouldn't think I was a guilty party.

I was, but I didn't want to be caught.

I went up, and found the weak spot.

It was surprisingly sensible for them, but someone had thought to ward over the building where the brooms were kept. Some students flew for recreational purposes, according to my memories. Recreational? This guy was boring.

I didn't need a broom, though. It would only make me a little easier to trace. I drew the student's wand, and pointed it at the invisible wall in front of me.

Boom.

* * *

><p>Unfortunately, you can push too much power through a wand. And so my wand collection had lost a potential addition.<p>

I wasn't too happy with that, but at least I had escaped. It had taken a Bombarda Maxima instead of just a Bombarda, but it worked.

Flipsy had returned, and a toad now sat in a corner of the room of my trunk, making noises occasionally as it balanced on an egg. The house elf took care of it for me.

She was very useful to me, and very happy, now that she had work to do and a nice uniform she had made herself. It didn't exactly conform to any fashion I knew, but it looked good on her.

Now, for the upgrade. I Disguised as the divination professor, and drew his wand. For his skill, it wasn't much work to do the rig the upgrade I wanted, even if it wasn't perfect just yet.

Now, a certain wall, the one facing the front of the trunk, acted as a screen. And it showed, much like a communication mirror did, what another place could see- Namely, the lid of my trunk. So now if I left the lid open, I could see where I was going, and 'drive' my disillusioned trunk along much easier.

...But I'd probably have to upgrade it soon. It wasn't a very elegant upgrade. I'd probably want to make something that worked when the lid was closed.

I sat down in a particularly squishy armchair I got from Diagon Alley, and started a muggle book on general snake care.


End file.
